Back to Bali

I definitely need to plan another trip back to Bali! 

 

The resort I stayed at was very nice - quiet and private which was what I wanted.  But it also meant I was pretty far from anywhere else on the island.  I think there would be a lot of fun things to get out and do on the island.  So, my next trip will be a more active one for sure.  And this time I'll read ahead of time so I have a plan.

I have been able to post a full set of pics now with commentary and all from the trip.  Here are some other neat things that I learned/experienced along the way.

• You don't need to get a travel Visa in advance, but you do need S$17 to get in the country for less than 10 days. (oh and money to get back out of the country as well!)
• The island of Bali is in Indonesia.  Yes, the same Indonesia as Jakarta, but it's tourist friendly and I stayed in a Japanese resort (staying clear of the Marriotts in Indonesia).
• The Indonesian currency is IDR (Rupiah) and comes in big bills.  The cost of most things is in the thousands - my lunch, 220,000 IDR.  It was weird carrying around nothing smaller than a 2,000 bill.
• I took out IDR 1M at the ATM...I was a millionaire! ;)
• The hotel rang a big gong when I arrived - more startling than anything.
• My free drink ticket was for juice! I opted for a margarita which ended up being more reminiscent of a martini.
• There were lots of creatures. Two frogs outside my door one night, ran smack into a spider web complete with spider (it quickly fell thank goodness), every night there was a bird or something outside that between 10-12 would make some crazy noise, camels on the beach...life everywhere.
• Lots of white people, but few Americans. Maybe that's because it was a Japanese resort.
• I had one dinner with some obnoxious families who did not control the kiddie table.  I think they decided to take a vacation from parenting as well.  Sorry - but me still single with no kids - I get to make judgements like that ;).

My rest and relaxation mode allowed for a lot of reading. 
1)  I finished my new John Grisham book of short stories - each of which left me wanting to read more. 

2) I also read Kite Runner after my friend at PreventionRD recmmended it a couple of times.  And it was marvelous!! It had me crying at the beach, crying in my room, but it was good.

3) Before I left Singapore, I watched an Oprah episode (they are about a year behind here) about the Secret Life of Bees - sounded good and I bought it.  Finished that one before vacation was done as well.  Also a good book - I think only a little crying.

4) Another Christmas present was Dan Brown's The Lost Symbol - but it was too big to pack with me.  I figured the other three were enough.  They weren't, and while at the airport (I was really early) I found Angels & Demons, which I hadn't read.  So I picked it up, and before I went back to work, it was finished too! Of course it was a great thriller.

So who's ready to come to Bali with me??? :D